Football

BOSTON (CBS) – With the Patriots unlikely to place the franchise tag on Aqib Talib by this afternoon’s deadline, the team reportedly has another shutdown corner in their plans.

According to ProFootballTalk.com, the Patriots and Broncos are trying to “shake Revis free” from Tampa Bay, with the idea that his style might not be a fit for new head coach Lovie Smith’s defensive scheme (not to mention the $16 million cap hit).

PFT’s Mike Florio adds, “the sense is that the chatter is coming from teams that would pay the amount for a year or two as part of an all-in effort to win a Super Bowl. The speculation has centered most prominently on the Patriots and Broncos.”

Florio notes that if a deal were to be made it’d have to happen soon because the Bucs owe Revis $1.5 million on March 13.

“By close of business today, which is 4pm for the league, I do not think Aqib Talib will be franchised,” said Scott Zolak Monday. “I think they would like to work a contract extension and get him back here. I think if there’s any genuine interest in Revis, and from what I’ve heard there is, it would be to replace Aqib and not to have both – I don’t think that day will come. This is Plan B. If you can’t get Talib done, you better not go into the year with Kyle Arrington and Alfonzo Dennard as your two corners. That’s not going to work.”

The way that Andy Gresh interprets Revis’ contract is that it’s $16 million per season with no bonuses ($1 million per game), and if the Bucs were to cut him it wouldn’t count against their cap.

Gresh just feels like based on his holdout history that Darrelle Revis would not play ball contractually with the Patriots on a lesser deal.

Listen below for the full discussion and see how the Brent Grimes extension plays into everything: